With You
by hersheygal
Summary: Jack and Kate are college roommates. They become fast friends, but when their feelings get in the way, will they give into them? Other characters come later. Jate. AU. Chapter 7 up
1. Chapter 1

With You

Disclaimer: I don't own LOST.

A/N: I was listening to this song by Jessica Simpson called With You, and you know me, I always relate anything I can to Jate so I decided to write a story. This isn't a song fic, but I thought that I should explain the title.

Kate dropped her bags in front of the dorm room door, fumbling with the keys that she had just been given. With her heart thumping in her chest, she went to unlock the door, but discovered that it was already unlocked. Kate paused with her hand on the doorknob as she closed her eyes and took a deep breath. This was it, her chance at a new life, away from Wayne, away from her mother. She didn't like leaving her mother with Wayne, but it was evident that Diane wasn't going to leave Wayne anytime soon. And with Tom gone now, she just had to move.

Kate opened the door and brought her luggage in, closing the door behind her. She smiled as she looked around her. It was a small dorm room, made for three people. It had two bedrooms, a living room, a kitchen, and one bathroom. She looked down at her paper and saw that she had a roommate.

"Hello?" Kate called out.

No one answered.

Kate went up into one of the bedrooms and put her luggage on the ground. She sat on the bed, but then she stood up in surprise when a young guy walked into the room.

"Hey."

"Hi."

"So, I guess we're roommates."

Kate observed the tall guy. He looked to be about twenty. His hair was black and spiked. His eyes were a piercing hazel. He wore a white shirt with jeans, and he was barefoot.

Kate looked down at her sheet of paper. "Are you Jackie Shephard? I'm sorry. I thought I was rooming with a female."

"Jackie?" Jack grinned and took the paper from her. "They got it wrong. I'm Jack."'

"Oh. Well I'm Kate."

"Nice to meet you."

Kate smiled. "What are you here for?"

"I want to be a doctor." Jack paused. "Wait, let me take that back. My dad wants me to be a doctor."

"And what do you want to be?"

"Well I'll tell you if you'll let me take you out to dinner." Jack said with a sparkle in his eyes.

"Dinner?"

"Yeah I take all my roommates to dinner."

Kate raised her eyebrows and Jack became serious. "I just want us to get to know each other. I mean if we're gonna be living together for four years I'd like to know that you're not going to kill me in my sleep."

Kate laughed. "All right let's go to dinner. Just let me unpack first. Don't you need to unpack?"

"No. I got here last night. I live here in L.A." Jack explained.

"So what are you doing in a dorm then?"

"I wanted to get away from my parents."

"UCLA." Kate murmured to herself.

"Yeah. This is it."

"This is going to change our lives isn't it?" Kate asked, opening one of her bags.

"You bet it is. So do you want me to help you? It will go faster."

"Sure."

Jack came alongside her and they started unpacking. "So why are you here?" Jack asked Kate curiously.

Kate bit her lip. "I wanted to get away from my family too."

"Oh I see. Aren't you here for an education though?"

"I don't know what I want to do yet."

"Who's paying for your tuition and stuff?"

"I got a full scholarship. I was a straight A student." Kate explained. "How did you get here?"

Jack nodded "The same. But if I hadn't gotten a scholarship my dad would have still paid for it."

Kate was starting to understand that Jack's family was rich. Money was no objection for Jack.

"Well I'm glad you know your way around here. I have no idea of where anything is." Kate said.

"I'd be glad to give you a tour tonight."

"Thanks."

Jack silently watched her as she went over to her closet. She was a little shorter than him, with her brunette hair up in a ponytail. He wondered what she looked like with it down. Jack had had a couple girlfriends in high school, but they had always broken up. Not that Jack wanted a relationship with someone he had just met, but he definitely felt a connection between them.

"What are you staring at?" Kate looked at herself, examining her shirt. "Do I have a stain or something?"

Jack blushed in embarrassment. "Uh, no."

"Well then stop staring. You're making me nervous."

Jack didn't say anything as he coughed.

"So how did you get here?" Jack asked.

"What do you mean?"

"Did you drive, fly, what?"

"I flew." Kate shuddered. "I hate flying."

"What? You're afraid you're gonna crash?"

"Yeah there's that, but all the people…" Kate trailed off. "I like having my own space." Kate looked up at Jack. "Remember that."

"Right. Give Kate space." Jack said in a monotone voice.

"We should probably go over some stuff."

"Like what?"

"Like who's going to do the dishes, when we should be quiet so that we can sleep, when we take showers, when we get food." Kate listed a number of things.

"Should I be writing this down?" Jack asked teasingly.

Kate playfully hit Jack's arm and he laughed.

"Seriously though, I don't think we'll have much of a problem." Jack said.

"And why do you think that?"

Jack shrugged. "We both seem kind of laid back."

"You just wait until midterms and you'll see how laid back I can be." Kate said.

"Yeah well, me too. Honestly I think that we should just play it by ear. If we have a problem with something then we should just tell each other. If we're going to be friends then we need to be honest."

Kate nodded. "You're different Jack." Kate put her empty bag in the closet.

Jack sat on her bed. "What do you mean?"

"I've known a lot of guys." Kate sat down beside him. "You're one of those guys that would have been untouchable in high school."

"Untouchable?" Jack wondered where this was going.

"Sure you would have had a few girlfriends." Kate continued, "But you were more of a friend to most girls. A true friend. I once dated a guy like you. Well technically we're still dating."

Jack frowned and Kate playfully nudged him. "Don't look so disappointed. We haven't seen each other since he moved here. I'm hoping we'll reconnect."

"What's his name?"

"Tom. He wants to be a doctor too."

Jack nodded.

"Will you do me a favor?"

"What's that?"

"I'm going to see him this weekend, could you come with me?"

"Why?"

"I'm kind of nervous and it would help to have a friend with me."

"Sure. Of course I will."

Kate smiled. "Thanks Jack."

Jack smiled back at her. "Where do you want to eat?"

"Surprise me."

A/N: Let me know what you thought!


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I don't own LOST. Anything you recognize I don't own.

A/N: Sorry I didn't update sooner!

"Favorite food?"

Jack rolled his eyes. "Isn't it obvious?"

Kate looked around her. Jack had chosen his favorite burger place, Johnny Rockets.

"Burgers?" Kate asked.

"Yeah. You?"

Kate leaned in to the table as she scooted her seat in. They had already finished eating, and they were both debating on whether to get dessert.

"Pasta. I love pasta. I hate burgers."

"So that's why you got a salad. I didn't even know they had salad here."

"I'm a vegetarian."

"Oh." Jack leaned back in his seat.

"What? You can't live with me now?"

"No. But you won't kill me if I eat meat right?"

Kate laughed. "No."

They smiled at each other.

"So, you want to get ice cream or something?" Jack asked.

"Sure." Kate stood up and Jack followed her out. They walked along the sidewalk and Kate looked around her.

It's so busy out here. From where I'm from it's kind of quiet."

"That would be nice." Jack commented.

"I like this. I want to live here."

"Well, you kind of are." Jack grinned and Kate playfully pushed him. Jack pointed to the ice cream parlor across the street and Kate followed him in.

"Hey Jack." The blonde girl at the counter smiled at Jack and he smiled back.

"Hey Juliet. This is Kate. She's going to UCLA too."

"Hi Kate. UCLA huh? I'm going there too. Unlike Jack I'm living at home." Juliet gave Jack a smile. "So have you found out who your roommate is yet?"

"I'm his roommate." Kate smiled at Juliet. Juliet seemed like a smart girl but for some reason Kate didn't like her.

"Oh, well that's nice. So what do you want?" Juliet leaned across the counter.

"What do you want?" Jack asked Kate.

Kate skimmed over the flavors that were in the containers. "Where do they come up with these flavors?"

Juliet laughed. "I don't know."

"Cheesecake?" Kate made a face.

"You wanna try it?" Jack asked.

"You can do that?" Kate's eyes widened and Jack laughed.

"Of course."

Juliet got her a sample and Kate decided that she liked it. Jack got cookie dough and soon they were walking out the door. Jack wanted to show her the park.

"So how do you know Juliet?" Kate asked.

"High school. We used to go out, but it didn't really work out. She still wants me." Jack grinned at Kate.

Kate nodded. "Oh..but you don't want her?" Kate asked curiously and Jack shrugged, taking a huge scoop of ice cream.

"Not really. She's not my type."

"And what's your type?"'

Jack looked at Kate for a second and he seemed to be thinking. "You know, I don't have a clue."

"Well maybe you should go out with more girls and you would know what your type was."

Jack nodded. "Yeah maybe."

"What?"

"I'm just not the type of guy that would date around."  
"Then get to know some girls and then date them."

They reached the park and Kate couldn't believe how big and serene it was.

They sat down on a bench and finished their ice cream in silence.

Kate set her cup down and she leaned against the bench, sighing in satisfaction. "You know what?"

"What?" Jack said quietly.

"I've always wanted to lay in the grass and stare at the stars."

"That sounds romantic."

"Yeah." Kate sat for a minute before talking again. "It's kind of funny, I've only known you for a day and yet I feel closer to you than to anyone I've ever known."

Jack turned to meet her gaze. "Yeah I know what you mean. You're a great girl Kate, your boyfriend's a lucky guy."

Kate smiled and nodded. "Like I said, I don't know if he still cares about me."

"Well then he's not the guy for you. You think he's your soul mate?"

Their voices had gotten quieter and more relaxed. Kate felt comfortable sitting there with Jack. She had been more open with him than she had ever been with anyone else. For some reason, she felt like Jack was her soul mate. She wouldn't dare say it to him, but she knew that Jack was special.

"I don't know."

Jack breathed deeply. He didn't even know if he believed in soul mates. "Well I guess we'd better get back to the dorms. It's not safe to be out here this late."

"Oh, does Jack have a bedtime?" Kate said teasingly.

They stood up and began to walk back and Jack shook his head.

"Wait, I know. Jack's scared of the dark. That's it."

Jack ignored her as Kate followed him from behind. Kate laughed to herself and soon they were back home.

Kate went into the kitchen and opened the refrigerator. "We're gonna have to go shopping tomorrow." She called out.

"Okay!" Jack yelled back from his room. He had told her that he was going to be setting up his computer.

Jack didn't seem like a computer geek, but she had to keep reminding herself that she'd only known him for day. She had no idea of what he was like.

Kate curled up on the couch and flipped through the channels on the television, finding nothing. Soon she found herself drifting off to sleep.

Jack appeared from the bedroom an hour later, and walked into the kitchen. He went to the refrigerator but then remembered that they had no food. Jack sighed and noticed that it was almost midnight. He turned around and saw Kate sleeping on the couch. He smiled and went over to the couch, standing in front of her. She was different. She wasn't like anyone he had ever known, and even though he'd only known her a day, he cared for her more than anyone he had ever known. It was a strange feeling.

A/N: Kate's gonna go find Tom in the next chapter and then it will get interesting.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I don't own LOST

Kate stood impatiently at the door of the dorm room waiting for Jack. He was driving her to Tom's house and she could hardly wait to get there.

Jack walked out of his room and grinned as Kate glared at him. "I'm coming!"

"Come on Jack!" Kate said.

It was a bright Saturday afternoon, and Jack and Kate had been rooming together for a couple days. Kate had learned a lot about Jack in that time.

Jack grabbed his keys and they went down the stairs and into his car. He had a pretty nice car. He said that his parents had bought it for him and that's why it was such an expensive car.

Jack turned the car on and they started driving as Kate got out her directions.

"You nervous?" Jack asked.

"Oh yeah." Kate laughed nervously.

"Well, I'll be there right?" Jack looked at her briefly.

"Yeah. You don't have to do this. I can go in alone."

"No that's okay. I want to see how Tom has put up with you all of these years. Maybe he has some tips."

"Hey!"

"It's true."

"I don't bother you. What do I do?" Now Kate was curious.

"Well, you always leave your plates in the sink, you never put them in the dishwasher."

"The dishes are your job." Kate pointed out.

"Yeah but you could make it a bit easier for me by rinsing out the plate." Jack grinned at her with a twinkle in his eyes.

"Yeah whatever. So what else?"

Jack grew serious for a second. "You always fall asleep on the couch every night." Jack remembered how he had almost kissed her forehead the night before.

"How does that bother you?" Kate asked.

"Trust me, it does."

"Wait, turn here. It's on this street!" Kate pointed.

"Okay, okay. Don't freak out."

"I'm not."

"Sure you're not." Jack pulled in front of the house and turned the car off and looked at Kate.

"Aren't you going to get out?" Jack asked.

"I will. I just need a second."

Jack nodded. This guy must mean a lot to Kate.

"Maybe you should go in alone." Jack suggested.

"No!" Kate whipped around to look at him. "I mean, okay." She coughed and looked at him pleadingly and he nodded.

"I'm coming. Don't worry." Jack assured her.

"Thanks. I feel so stupid."

"Why?"

"I haven't seen him for a long time. What if he's already married and has kids?"

"He wouldn't do that to you. Come on, let's go." Jack pulled his keys out of the ignition and got out of the car. He shut his door and kept eye contact with Kate as he walked around to her side of the car. He opened the door and she just looked at him.

"Am I gonna have to carry you up the steps or what?" Jack put his hands on his hips and acted like he was reprimanding a little girl.

"I'm coming." Kate said quickly. She jumped out of the car and slammed the door.

Kate practically ran up the steps but stopped in front of the door. Jack walked around her and rang the doorbell, and then pushed Kate in front of him.

A couple seconds went by and Kate started to get restless, shifting weight from foot to foot.

"Calm down." Jack whispered in her ear, and Kate found herself shivering. Why would she react that way to Jack whispering to her? Kate pushed the thought out of her head when the door opened, revealing a woman of about twenty-five, with red hair.

"Can I help you?" The woman said impatiently.

"Um, I'm looking for Tom Brennan?"

"Yes?"

"Can I talk to him?"

"Who are you?"

"I'm a old friend of his, are you his roommate?"

The woman laughed. "No, I'm his wife."

"Oh." Kate tried not to show her surprise, but the woman noticed the way her face fell.

"I'm Rachael." The woman opened her door wider. "Come on in."

Kate stepped inside and then looked back to make sure Jack was with her.

"Have a seat. I'll go get him." Rachael told them, motioning to the couch.

Kate looked around her. It was a fairly large house with two stories. Jack sat on the couch and waited for Kate to join him.

"It's huge." Kate whispered to Jack as she sat down next to him, trying to hide her disappointment.

"Yeah, well, I've seen larger."

"You have?" Kate turned to Jack.

"Yeah. My parents live in a pretty big house. I'll take you there sometime."

"Really?" Kate grinned.

"Yeah, we'll have a barbecue or something."

"Katie?"

Kate and Jack looked up.

Tom practically ran down the stairs and enveloped Kate in a hug. "Oh how I've missed you!"

Jack couldn't help but notice the way they hugged. They obviously had a history.

They broke apart and Kate struggled to compose herself. She couldn't cry in front of Jack and Tom's wife.

"Hi." Tom offered a hand out to Jack and Jack stood up and shook his hand.

"Hi, I'm Jack, Kate's room-"

"Boyfriend." Kate smiled at Tom and put an arm around Jack, pulling him close to her.

"Boyfriend." Jack quickly recovered, trying to hide the shock on his face, putting in arm around Kate's shoulders. He couldn't help but notice how perfectly she fit in his arm.

"Boyfriend?" Tom asked. "That's great, Katie!"

"Well I see you had no problem moving here." Kate said.

"Well, we've gotta move on Kate. You know that right? How's your mom?" Tom said awkwardly.

Kate shrugged. "I had to get out of there. I couldn't handle being around that pig." Kate said in disgust.

Tom nodded and turned to Jack. "So how did you meet Kate?"

"Yeah, Jack. Tell him how we met." Kate looked up at Jack, regretfully pulling away from him.

"Uh." Jack tried to think of something. "We've known each other for a while now. A mutual friend introduced us."

Kate rolled her eyes. "Jack's always trying to play it down. We actually hadn't met until earlier this week, but we'd been sending letters to each other for years, When we finally met, it was just… magic. I don't know. It's like we're meant for each other. It's like fate or something."

"Fate? I thought you didn't believe in fate, Katie." Tom said.

"I didn't. Not 'til I met Jack." Kate smiled up at Jack and he smiled back at her, wanting more than ever to kiss her. He quickly shook his head. He didn't want to think about that. They were roommates and nothing else.

"Well we're having a party next weekend and we'd love for you guys to come. It's a couples party anyways, so it will work out." Tom said.

"That sounds great!"

"Well I might be busy next weekend." Jack started to say.

"No you won't." Kate said.

"Okay, I won't." Jack sighed.

"Kate's already working her magic on you, huh?" Tom smiled.

"Oh yeah." Jack stared at Kate. He wondered if it was possible to fall in love with someone this fast. He hadn't ever believed in love at first sight before, not until now.

A/N: So Jack's fallen for Kate, but they're gonna be fighting their feelings for a while now.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I don't own LOST.

A/N: I'm so sorry for not updating sooner!! We're going to start meeting more of the characters now.

After leaving Tom's house, Kate and Jack had quickly gone home. The car ride home had been awkward enough, Jack had no idea of what it was going to be like back at the dorm.

As they walked in the door, Kate plopped down on the couch and sighed.

Jack tossed his keys onto the small table by the door, and sat down beside Kate, not saying anything.

"Tom's a good cook." Jack commented. Tom had insisted that Jack and Kate should stay for dinner.

"Oh Jack, I'm so sorry for bringing you into this!" Kate turned towards Jack, her eyes wet. "I never thought that he would be married, and I don't know what I was thinking, telling him that you were my boyfriend."

"Hey, it's okay." Jack put a hand on Kate's back as she leaned forward, putting her head in her hands.

"I feel so stupid." Kate moaned quietly.

"No, you're fine. I would have done the same thing. He should have told you that he got married."

"Yeah, he should have." Kate stood up.

Jack smiled. Kate was quickly returning back to her normal self. "Any guy would be stupid to not want to be with you, Kate. That guy doesn't deserve you."

"Yeah, you're right. And next weekend, when we go to his little party, we'll show him how happy I am without him."

Jack grinned. He kind of liked this side to Kate. "Sounds good to me."

Kate looked down at Jack, as if she had forgotten that he was there. "Thanks Jack. I know that you would probably much rather stay here than go pretend to be my boyfriend."

"It's no big deal. Really it's not. As long as you go to the barbecue that my parents are going to have then we can call it even."

"Deal." Kate turned and walked into her room, shutting the door behind her.

Jack shook his head and stood up. Living with Kate was going to be one hell of a ride.

* * *

Monday afternoon, Jack walked into his dorm and put his backpack on the ground, walking over to Kate, who was sitting down at the table, eating a banana. Jack pulled a chair out and sat down next to her.

"So how was your first day of college?" Jack asked curiously.

"It was good. It was nice knowing you are going to be in my Physics class."

Jack nodded.

"You might need to help me a little with that." Kate said, taking a bite out of her banana and then pointing the banana at him.

Jack nodded again.

"So did anything exciting happen to you? Did you meet anyone? Is Juliet in any of your classes?"

Jack laughed. "What's up with all the questions?"

Kate shrugged. "I don't know. I was just wondering."

"Nothing exciting happened to me, I met a kid named Charlie in my Lit class, and Juliet is in two of my classes."

"Oh really?" Kate's eyes narrowed.

"Are you jealous?" Jack grinned.

"Of Juliet? No. It's just that she seems to really like you, and I don't like her."

"So you don't approve of her?"

"No."

"So am I going to have to run my girlfriends through you first before I'm allowed to date them?"

"Yes. What's Charlie like?"

"He's okay. He wrote songs the entire period." Jack shook his head. "Apparently Charlie's only going to college to please his mother. He really wants to be in a band with his brother."

Kate nodded. "I'll have to meet him sometime. Hey!" Kate suddenly jumped up.

"What?"

"We should have a party!"

"What?" Jack repeated.

"You know, a dorm party thing.."

"No way. I'm not having a bunch of irresponsible people in my dorm."

"Oh come on Jack. You're no fun." Kate puckered her lips and gave Jack the puppy eyes.

"Oh no." Jack put his head in his hands. "Not the puppy eyes."

Kate laughed and pulled Jack's hands away from his face, staring into his eyes. It was then that Kate noticed how deep brown Jack's eyes were.

Still holding onto Jack's hands, Kate leaned forward so that her nose was almost touching Jack's. "Please?"

Jack stared into Kate's eyes, licking his lips. He quickly looked away, sighing. "All right. Fine."

Kate dropped Jack's hands and hugged him hard. "Thank you!" Kate pulled away and sat down again, pulling out a pad of paper and a pen. "Okay, so we'll need food. And streamers!"

"Kate, this isn't a birthday party."

"Oh, right." Kate scratched out the streamers, and put down soda instead. "This is going to be so much fun!"

Jack rolled his eyes. "I can barely contain my excitement."

* * *

On Wednesday, as Jack was walking out of his Literature class, he heard someone calling his name.

"Jack?" Jack turned, and noticed a guy walking towards him.

"Sawyer." Jack sighed. "You actually made it into college?"

"Yeah, you surprised Shephard?" Sawyer grinned.

"Yeah I am, after what you did…" Jack trailed off.

"Hey, a guy's gotta do what a guy's gotta do. So how was your summer?"

"Pretty good. Yours?"

"Exciting."

Jack nodded. "Okay.."

"So, what dorm number you at?"

"Uh, 815. You?"

"Hey we're on the same floor. I'm 820. Can't believe we haven't run into each other yet."

"Yeah, I can't believe it either." Jack stared at the wall behind Sawyer.

"Oh and you won't believe who I'm rooming with." Sawyer grinned.

"Who?"

"Shannon. You remember her?"

"The girl that was always hitting on her brother?"

"Yeah. That's the one."

"You're sick." Jack started walking, hoping that Sawyer would leave him alone.

"So who are you rooming with?" Sawyer asked Jack, following him.

"Um, a girl."

"A girl huh? Who?"

Jack hesitated.

"What? You afraid I'm gonna get to her first or what?"

"Jack!"

Jack quickly turned. He knew that voice. He smiled when Kate ran up to him. "Hey you want to each lunch together today? I was thinking Subway."

"What about the meat?"

Kate shrugged. "I won't get any."

"Sure."

"Hey." Sawyer stepped in between the two, thrusting out his hand out to Kate.

"Hi." Kate slowly shook Sawyer's hand.

"I'm Sawyer, and you are?'

"Kate."

Jack squinted at Sawyer. Never had he hated him more than now.

"How do you know Jack?" Sawyer asked.

"Jack and I are roommates."

"Sawyer and I went to the same high school." Jack explained to Kate.

"So this is the girl that you didn't want me to know about." Sawyer nodded at Jack and Kate raised her eyebrows.

"Don't pay any attention to him." Jack put a hand on Kate's back, giving her a soft push. "See you later Sawyer." Jack said.

"Hey Sawyer, we're having a party at our dorm Saturn day night. You up for it?" Kate called back to Sawyer as Jack kept pushing her forward.

"Oh yeah, count me in. Mind if I bring a few people?" Sawyer called back to her.

"As many as you want." Kate grinned at him.

"Okay, that's enough." Jack pushed her a little harder.

"What?" Kate asked.

"Now Sawyer will bring the entire campus with him."

"No he won't."

"You don't know Sawyer."

"I don't think I want to know Sawyer." Kate frowned and Jack nodded, trying to hide a smile. For some reason, Jack didn't like the idea of Sawyer and Kate being together and the fact that Kate didn't seem to like Sawyer made Jack's day a whole lot better.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Disclaimer: I don't own LOST.

A/N: So I decided that Tom's party really wasn't going to be all that interesting, and you guys seem eager for the dorm party, so I went ahead and just skipped Tom's party. Jack and Kate will mention it though.

"This isn't right!"

"What isn't right?" Jack called back to Kate, sitting on the couch watching tv. Kate was in the kitchen attempting to bake cookies.

"I don't know. Maybe I didn't put enough flour."

"Why are you baking cookies anyways?"

"I told you that I wanted cookies!" Kate yelled back to him.

Jack sighed and stood up. "Is this about Tom? I know it was rough, but I thought we did a good job."

"Yeah for friends we did great." Kate muttered to herself.

"I heard that." Jack leaned against the kitchen doorway, and watched Kate wipe her hand across her forehead. Jack thought that she looked kind of cute trying to bake.

"I guess we did all right, but I don't know. I just think I made a fool out of myself."

Jack shook his head. "No you didn't."

It was late Friday night, and they had barely gotten back from Tom's party when Kate decided that she wanted to bake.

"Look, you caught me. I bake when I'm upset all right? Sure I'm not the best cook, but at least I'm not taking it out on you."

"It's all right. I'm sure they're good." Jack walked into the kitchen and took one of her cookies off of the stovetop.

"It's good. Oatmeal Raisin right?"

"Chocolate chip." Kate stared at Jack.

"Oh, well, it's still good."

Kate sighed and started to put stuff away. "Thanks for going with me, again."

"No problem. Really I actually had fun."

"Well that makes one of us."

"You gotta stop kicking yourself Kate. You're a great girl."

Kate looked at Jack and smiled. "You didn't have to say that."

"You have flour on your nose." Jack reached for her nose to wipe it off and then he looked into her eyes.

"Thanks." Kate looked away and Jack coughed.

"So, you excited about that party of yours tomorrow?" Jack asked.

"Yeah. It'll be fun. Better than the party tonight."

"Yeah."

"Well, I'm going to go watch some tv." Kate yawned and went into the living room, where she curled up on the couch, and Jack followed her.

"Do you think that you could maybe sleep in your bed tonight?" Jack asked.

"Why does it matter to you?" Kate looked at him, surprised.

"I don't know, I just think the couch wouldn't be very comfortable."

"Well I keep falling asleep on it, don't I?"

"Well, yeah I guess."

Kate shook her head. "If it bothers you that much, I guess I could try to sleep in my room tonight."

"No, that's okay. You go ahead and do what you want. After all, this is our dorm."

"Well yeah, but your parents paid for all the furniture, so technically, you own more of it than I do."

"What did I tell you about that? While we're living together, we share everything." Jack reminded her.

"Thanks Jack."

Jack nodded. "Okay well, I'm going to go get ready for bed."

"Okay, goodnight." Kate yawned again.

Jack went into his room and stripped down to his boxers and a muscle shirt and then sat down on his bed. Kate had seemed to be pretty comfortable at the party, pretending to be his girlfriend. It had been a lot of fun, even though Kate thought that they hadn't been too convincing. Jack raked through his hair with his hand and sighed. He didn't know why it was getting so complicated.

Jack stood up and went to the kitchen to get a glass of water. When he walked into the living room, Kate was fast asleep on the couch. Jack couldn't help but smile as he set down his glass of water. He walked over to the hall closet and took out a blanket and then walked over to Kate, putting the blanket over her. He straightened up and watched her sleep for a few minutes. She was so pretty and calm when she slept. He wondered if she was ever calm when she was awake. So far, Kate had a lot of energy. But he liked that.

Jack noticed that her hair was falling in her face, and he bent down to smooth her hair back.

He'd done this many times before already, and usually he would get up and go to his room after giving her a blanket, but tonight, he felt different. He had liked pretending that Kate was his girlfriend. She was beautiful, smart, and caring. She was different than a lot of other girls that he had met.

He found himself kissing her forehead, and then he whispered, "Goodnight Kate." He stood up and began walking away, when Kate shifted positions on the couch.

"Goodnight Jack." She sighed contentedly, and Jack froze. Did she know that he kissed her? He quickly walked to his room, his face flushed with embarrassment.

* * *

The next morning, Jack woke up early. He hadn't slept well all night, and when the sun came out, Jack decided to go for a run. He was hoping to get out the door before Kate woke up.

He walked out of his room, and noticed Kate sitting at the table, reading a magazine.

"I'm going for a run." Jack murmured, half hoping she didn't hear him.

"Okay." Kate said quietly.

Jack nodded and then sprinted out the door. As soon as Jack left the dorm room, Kate put the magazine down and grinned. She had gone out early and bought a bunch of things for their party for that night.

She went into her room grabbed the supplies from under her bed. She went into the living room and started to decorate it by putting streamers across the room and blowing up balloons. She turned the stereo on and started singing.

Suddenly, Jack burst through the door. "Kate, I'm sorry."

Kate turned around, standing on a chair. "For what?"

Jack looked around him. "Uh, nothing."

"That wasn't a very long run."

Jack stared at her. Did she really not remember? "Yeah, I didn't feel like running."

Kate raised her eyebrow. "Okay. Well you want to help me with the decorations then? I was going to surprise you and have them all up before you came back."

"Oh, sorry. I'll help." Jack pulled out a chair and grabbed the streamer Kate was holding and put it up for her.

"When did you get these?" Jack asked.

"This morning. I snuck out." Kate said smugly.

"You should have woken me up. We could have gone together. What if I woke up and you were gone? I wouldn't know where you were." Jack suddenly became very worried at the thought of not knowing where Kate was.

"Jack, relax." Kate put a hand on his arm. "I wrote you a note on the fridge in case you woke up."

"Oh."

"What's up with you lately?" Kate asked.

"Nothing. I just-"

'What?" Kate prodded.

"Hand me another streamer." Jack looked away from her and Kate sighed. She had tried to fight her feelings for Jack, hoping that they would go away, but now they were just stronger than ever. She just didn't know if he felt the same.

A/N: The party is next chapter.. and there just might be a kiss…Thank you guys for your patience. I know I'm not updating as much as I would like to, but I will have the next chapter up really soon!


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

Disclaimer: I don't own LOST. I don't own the song So Close by Jon McLaughlin

A/N: This is dedicated to all of you for waiting so patiently for me to update. It means so much to me. I will try to update more often now, I swear! Things have been really hectic for me lately. I wrote an extra long chapter this time. And the kiss I've been promising is in this chapter as well.

Warnings: Mentions use of alcohol.

The music was playing obnoxiously loud, so loud that Jack was worried about someone reporting it to the dean. When he expressed this to Kate, she just shook her head and laughed.

Jack opened the door, as a string of college students came in, some of them holding food in their hands, and others, the occasional beer bottle.

"Kate!" Jack shouted across the room, where Kate was talking to Shannon.

"What?" Kate shouted back.

"They're bringing beer!"

"Relax man!" Charlie walked by, a bottle in his own hand.

"What are you doing?" Jack yelled at him over the music.

"Turning the music up." Charlie turned the knob higher.

Kate walked across the room over to Jack. "Come on Jack, loosen up. Have fun. Haven't you ever been to a party before? Have you ever had beer?"

"Of course I have."

"Then why does it bother you?"

"Because it's in our dorm."

Someone behind Kate accidentally ran right into Kate, and she stepped forward to regain her balance, sending her straight into Jack. Jack grabbed her arms in order to steady her.

"It's crazy in here!" Jack shouted.

"I know! Isn't it great!"

The door to the dorm opened, and Sawyer walked in, holding a six-pack of beer in one hand and a girl around his arm.

"Hey!" Sawyer nodded at Jack and grinned at Kate.

"I'm glad you could make it!" Kate told him.

"Yeah. " Sawyer looked around him. "You've got quite a party goin' here. I'm surprised Jack. You've finally grown up."

Jack rolled his eyes as Sawyer went and made himself at home with his girl.

"What does he mean by that?" Kate asked Jack.

"In high school Sawyer held all the parties, and the ones he didn't have he crashed."

"What's that have to do with you?"

"I never went to his parties."

"Why not?"

"Look at him." Jack motioned at him. "He's a nightmare waiting to happen. He slept with the whole senior class, I swear."

Someone knocked on the door and Jack went to open it.

"Hey Jack." Juliet grinned at him.

"You invited her?" Kate asked.

"Yeah. What's wrong?" Jack turned towards her.

"Nothing."

"Hey Juliet."

Juliet put her arms around Jack in a friendly hug and kissed his cheek.

Kate crossed her arms and frowned.

Hey Kate!" Juliet smiled at her.

"Hey Juliet!" Kate said, her voice dripping with fake enthusiasm.

"Great party Jack!" Juliet turned back to Jack.

"It was mostly Ka-"

"Yeah, that's great." Juliet interrupted him. "Let's go in the kitchen huh?"

"Okay…" Jack followed her into the kitchen.

Kate shook off the bad feeling she had and turned around, running right into Sawyer.

"Hey, what's up?"

"Nothing."

"You look like you could use a drink." Sawyer said casually.

"Yeah."

"Here." Sawyer offered her the bottle in his hand.

Kate looked at it doubtfully.

"What? You don't drink?"

"Oh I drink." Kate just didn't want to be drunk around Jack. She had a history of acting a bit crazy when she was drunk.

"Then what're you waiting for? Drink!" Sawyer pushed the bottle into Kate's hand, and she gratefully took it.

"So why did you want to go into the kitchen Juliet?" Jack asked as Juliet closed the kitchen door behind her.

"It's more…. private in here Jack."

"What?"

"I thought we could talk." Juliet approached Jack and leaned into him.

"Uh, you thirsty?"

"Oh yeah."

Jack gulped and quickly turned and opened the refrigerator door, which Juliet quickly shut.

"What's wrong Jack? You said there wasn't anybody else. Why can't we just get back together?"

"Uh, well, there may be someone else."

"What?" Juliet backed away from Jack. "You've not gone out with anyone else since me. How could there…..?" Juliet trailed off. "Kate. It's Kate isn't it? You've only known her for what? A week?"

"It's been longer than that."

"So you're not denying it then?"

Jack didn't say anything.

"You think she's the girl for you? You think she's your type?"

"I don't know."

"She doesn't know you like I do. She hasn't known you as long as I have. I know everything about you Jack."

"Not everything."

Juliet glared at him. "So this is how it's going to be."

Jack nodded.

"Fine." Juliet muttered and left the room.

Jack shook his head and followed her out of the kitchen. The scene in the living room surprised him. Everyone was dancing, but that wasn't what surprised him. Kate was dancing, jumping up and down, shaking her head, raising her hands in the air. Jack smiled. She looked so cute. Then he frowned as he watched Sawyer put his arms around her waist, dancing with her.

Kate laughed and danced to the beat with him.

Jack stood with his hands in his pockets, watching everyone. It reminded him of high school all over again. He would always stand on the side, never dancing. It saddened him in a way, to know that nothing had changed.

"Come on Jack!"

Jack shook his head and realized that Kate had ditched Sawyer and had ran across the room over to him. She took his hand and pulled him into the middle of all the people.

"Let's dance!"

She began to bob her head again, her hair flying everywhere. She still held onto Jack's hand, with her other hand raised. Jack grinned at her and couldn't help but start to move to the beat.

"I don't dance!" Jack shouted at her.

"What?"

"I don't dance!" Jack yelled over the music.

"Yes you do! You're dancing right now!" Kate smiled at him, and started to sing the song.

Jack grinned at her. She always made him feel like this, like he was the coolest guy around. He had never felt that way, until he had met her.

Charlie sat across the room, controlling the stereo. He noticed Kate and Jack dancing and smiled. They seemed like they would make a cute couple. Charlie grinned. He had an idea. He put in a cd, and pressed play. People quickly adjusted to the change of pace. Some stopped dancing completely, others complained (mainly Sawyer) and then some couples kept on dancing.

Kate smiled shyly and moved closer to Jack and Jack held his breath, watching her carefully.

"What are you doing?"

"What does it look like I'm doing?" She placed her hand on Jack's shoulder, and Jack relaxed.

"May I have this dance?" Jack asked softly, smiling at her. He held out his hand. Kate's smile broadened and she took his hand. He put his other arm around her waist, pulling her closer to him. At first, Kate stiffened, afraid, but then she relaxed and sighed contentedly.

_You're in my arms_

_And all the world is calm_

_The music playing on for only two_

_So close together_

_And when I'm with you_

_So close to feeling alive_

Jack looked over Kate's shoulder at Charlie, who gave him a thumb's up. Jack's jaw dropped. Had he planned this?!?! He looked at Kate, who was gazing up at him.

"If this is too awkward or something, we can stop." Jack told her, hoping she wanted to keep dancing.

"Shhhh. Don't talk." Kate's finger on Jack's mouth, then quickly drew back, as if she had been shocked.

"What?" Jack asked, his lips still tingling from her touch.

_A life goes by_

_Romantic dreams will stop_

_So I bid mine goodbye and never knew_

_So close was waiting, waiting here with you_

_And now forever I know_

_All that I wanted to hold you_

_So close_

Kate shook her head and smiled. She laid her head on Jack's chest, and Jack's heart began to race. He hoped she wouldn't feel it.

But Kate did hear it. She slowly placed her hand over his beating heart. "I love you." She whispered softly so that he wouldn't hear.

_So close to reaching that famous happy end_

_Almost believing this was not pretend_

_And now you're beside me and look how far we've come_

_So far we are so close_

Jack's heart leaped into his chest in a panic. She had noticed. He had been so careful not to expose his feelings for her, and now she must have figured it out. Kate opened her eyes and tilted her head back so that she could look Jack in the eyes. He looked at her uncertainly.

Kate suddenly had the urge to kiss him, and she did.

Jack was taken aback, and it took him a second to recover. Once he got over the surprise, he eagerly kissed her back, holding her tightly against him.

_How could I face the faceless days_

_If I should lose you now?_

_We're so close_

_To reaching that famous happy end_

_And almost believing this was not pretend_

_Let's go on dreaming for we know we are_

_So close_

_So close_

_And still so far_

Kate didn't know why she did it. She didn't know if it was the effects of the alcohol kicking in or if she was suddenly brave. She was suddenly so tired, and within a few seconds, she passed out, and Jack caught her in his arms.

Maybe it was the alcohol.

A/N: Please let me know what you thought. And if you have any ideas, just let me know.


	7. Chapter 7

With You

Chapter 7

Disclaimer: I don't own LOST.

A/N: Short chapter, but I wanted to give you guys something. Thank you so much for all the reviews!

Kate woke up with a jolt. Her eyes opened wide as she remembered the night before. She laid there staring up at the ceiling forever. She remembered the party, she remembered the dancing….and then…. She remembered the kiss. Kate groaned. Had she kissed him or had he kissed her? She couldn't remember. The most important detail, and she couldn't remember.

Kate sat up, and then quickly laid back down. Her head was killing her and the room was spinning. Wait, this wasn't her room, this wasn't even the living room. This was ... Jack's room? What exactly _had _happened last night?

Kate attempted to get up one more time, and this time she succeeded. As her feet hit the floor, Kate noticed Jack passed out on the floor. What was he doing on the floor? Kate gently touched his back with her toe. When he didn't wake up, she lowered herself to the floor, trying to forget the headache, and hugged her knees to her chest. She watched him sleep.

Kate put her hand on his back and rubbed it slowly. He felt tense, even in sleep. Why was he always tense? She had to find a way to get him to relax. Tonight. She would do something special for him. He was always looking out for her, always there for her. And he had even let her have this party, which he had obviously hated.

Kate realized that as she had been thinking, Jack had woken up. He turned onto his back so that he was facing her. He put his hand over his eyes, rubbing the sleep away.

"Good morning." Kate said softly with a smile.

"How long was I asleep?" He mumbled sleepily.

"I don't know. I just woke up. When did you go to sleep, and more importantly, why are you on the floor?"

"Everyone left around three last night."

"When did I…. when did I pass out?" Kate asked nervously.

Jack sat up and moved to sit next to her against the bed. "About midnight." He grinned. "Apparently, you're not quite the party type you thought you were."

"I am too!" Kate insisted. "I guess I had too much to drink."

Jack shook his head, frowning. "Yeah."

"So um, you never answered my other question, why were you sleeping on the floor?"

"Well, after you passed out, I carried you in here, because I knew no one would go in my room. And then after everyone left I guess I passed out too."

"In here?"

"I came in to check on you.. and I guess I fell asleep." Jack was blushing slightly.

"So…did anything happen last night?" Kate's heart beat faster.

"What do you mean."

"Between us." Kate looked down, playing with her hands. Had she imagined the kiss? No she couldn't have. She remembered thinking that he was a great kisser.

"You mean the dancing?"

"No."

"Nothing happened."

Kate looked at Jack then, and saw the twinkle in his eye. "Would you stop making this so uncomfortable?!?"

Jack sighed. "Yes. We kissed. We might as well talk about it."

"Did I…?"

"Yeah." Jack grinned at her.

"I'm sorry. I was drunk and I didn't know what I was thinking." Kate looked down again.

"Why?"

"What?" Kate's head jerked right back up again.

"Why are you sorry?"

"I don't want this to change our friendship." Kate mumbled. Actually, she did, but she still didn't know Jack's true feelings.

"Oh." Jack's expression changed. "I understand that."

Did Kate detect the sudden lack of enthusiasm in his words?

"I don't want things to be awkward between us." Kate said.

"Yeah.. so.. friends?" Jack offered his hand to her.

Kate stared at the hand for a moment before taking it. "Friends." She flashed him a smile, but Jack noticed that it didn't quite reach her eyes.

"So.. you hungry?" Jack asked her.

"Yeah."

"I'll make pancakes."

They both stood, Jack helping Kate up.

"We'll do it together." Kate smiled at him, and he nodded.

When Kate looked away from him, Jack frowned. So Kate didn't really like him. How could he have been so stupid to think that she would like him that way? He was too predicable for her.

Kate couldn't believe that she had made a fool of herself. How could she have been so stupid to think that he would like her that way? She was a disaster waiting to happen. But wait, why had he asked why she was sorry for the kiss? Did he secretly like her? Kate looked at Jack again and realized that he had been staring at her. They both looked away. It came to Kate. During the dancing, his heart had been racing, and before that he had kept showing so much concern for her. It was so obvious now. Kate's heart sank as she realized that she had just made a huge mistake, and now she had to find a way to fix it.

A/N: Hehe… I couldn't resist teasing you guys this way. So will Kate tell Jack that she does love him and wants to have a relationship with him? Or will she hide her feelings to protect their friendship? Hmmm… I'll update soon!


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

Disclaimer: I don't own LOST.

A/N: Wow guys, I am so sorry for abandoning all my stories. Life got in the way. But I noticed someone had recently reviewed this story and it made me come back and read some stories again and made me want to write again. I was looking over my notes for this story and I realized that I had a whole chapter ready to go that I had never posted. So here you guys go. I hope it was worth the wait and I will update as soon as I can. I have some ideas up my sleeve. :) Please let me know that you are reading!!

Kate watched Jack carefully during the next few weeks. She couldn't believe she hadn't noticed it before. He was always trying to hold himself back. He really cared about her. She realized that they were practically a couple already. They ate together, worked out together, talked all the time, and they'd even fallen asleep while sitting next to each other on the couch a couple times. That had been interesting. It had been a long day at school, and they were both exhausted. But Kate's favorite tv show was on, and she always made Jack sit and watch it with her.

Minutes later they had fallen asleep. Sometime during the night Jack's arm made its way around Kate, and Kate's head just innocently rested on Jack's shoulder. They woke up the next morning in the most awkward position, but they just got up and didn't think twice about it.

It became a habit for them. Every Friday night they started having movie nights. They would curl up on the couch together and each week they would take turns picking movies. This week it was Kate's turn.

Every week Kate chose romantic movies on purpose. Some weeks it was a comedy, and others were drama. This week, she chose A Walk to Remember. Jack still hadn't stopped complaining about it. But secretly he had enjoyed it because he liked watching Kate cry. He found it interesting. She rarely cried, and when she did, she let him comfort her. That was his favorite part.

Kate was leaning in towards the tv, sniffing quietly as it neared the end. Jack was silent, though throughout the movie he had been whispering some of the more romantic lines in her ear, just for fun of course. Now he was watching her curiously. Why did he feel like he needed to comfort her so strongly? They were just friends, but he loved her so much. He found himself lifting his hand, then dropping it again. He went through this agony for a minute, before he touched her hair. That was all Kate needed. She leaned back into him, and he put his arm around her.

Soon the end credits were rolling, and Kate was staring thoughtfully at the screen.

"Jack,"

"What?"

"What would you do if you knew I was going to die?" She asked quietly.

Jack just stared at her. The thought of it was unbearable. "Kate, we shouldn't talk about that."

"Why not?"

"Because it's depressing."

"So you would miss me, if I died."

"Of course. Kate I know we haven't known each other that long, but I don't know how I ever got around without you."

"Me too." Kate smiled. She was satisfied with that answer, and didn't press him anymore on the subject.

Kate was really starting to want more from Jack though. She loved their close friendship. But she wanted a relationship now. She wanted to know everything she could about Jack.

So she started dropping hints. Very subtly at first, but then she got impatient.

She got really desperate about a week ago. It had sort of worked. At least she thought it had.

She had gotten out of the shower and was brushing her hair when she had an idea. Jack had never seen her in her towel before. She wrapped her towel even tighter around herself and stepped outside of the bathroom. Usually at this point she would call out that she was heading from the bathroom to her room and then Jack would know not to walk in the hallway for a few minutes, but today she didn't do that. She just walked into the kitchen like everything was normal.

Jack was sitting on a barstool reading a book while snacking on some pretzels. Jack was always eating.

"I was thinking." Kate said, but Jack didn't even look up.

"Uh huh." He said absentmindedly.

"I think we're out of shampoo." She said louder, and Jack glanced at her briefly, before giving her a second look, this time he lingered longer at her. His jaw dropped as he gave her a once over.

Kate hid the grin spreading across her face.

"You're, you're getting water all over the floor." Jack stammered, as his face became hot with embarrassment.

"So?" she walked over to him, and he leaned back a little.

"What? You've never seen a girl in a towel before?" She grinned at him.

"Just, just my mom."

Kate laughed at that and purposely flung her hair in his direction, getting him wet as well.

"Hey!" Jack jumped up. He went to the sink, where they had a facet that they could detach from the sink. He pointed it at her and reached for the knob to turn it on.

"You wouldn't." Kate backed away.

"Oh yes I would." Jack turned it on and soon Kate was shrieking and laughing at the same time.

She went straight for Jack, holding her towel against her with one hand, and fighting with Jack for the facet.

She quickly gave that up and just lunged herself at him. Soon they were on the floor, both of them soaking wet as the water got all over the floor. They were both laughing now. Kate was on top of Jack, her hair in his face so that he couldn't see.

Jack looked up into Kate's eyes as he brushed her wet hair out of his face. They stared at each other, Kate holding onto his wet shirt with one hand, and her other hand still trying to keep her towel covering herself.

Then, someone knocked on the door.

Jack quickly jumped up. "I'll, I'll get it."

He hurried towards the door, while Kate stayed in the kitchen. It was seven in the morning, who could it possibly be?

As he jogged to the door, he realized that it was going to look weird that he was wet with his clothes on, so in a split second decision he took his shirt off before going to the door. He opened it, and Juliet stood on the other side.

"Juliet, what's going on?"

"I was just checking in on you." Juliet stared at him.

"Oh sorry, I just got out of the shower." He lied.

Kate heard Juliet's voice, and without thinking, she went to the door as well. "Hey Juliet."

"Kate?" Her eyes widened slightly. "Well, I'm sorry that I interrupted you, you're obviously busy."

""Yeah, we are." Kate said rather harshly.

"Kate." Jack said softly.

Juliet nodded. "I"ll catch up with you later."

"Bye, nice seeing you." Kate called out to her as she walked away.

"What was that about?" Jack asked.

"Did you see her, she's all over you!"

"So?"

"I thought you said that you and her were over."

"Why does it matter to you?"

"It doesn't." Kate said. "Why did you take off your shirt?" Kate tried not to look at his glistening wet chest, but she couldn't help it.

Jack shrugged and put his shirt back on. "I thought it would look weird for me to be wet with clothes on." Honestly he didn't know why he did it, just like Kate didn't know why she had gone to the door. The truth was that they were both insanely possessive of each other.

"I should get some clothes on." Kate murmured and left the room.

"Are you mad at me?" Jack asked incredously.

"No." Kate said in a way that meant that she was mad.

But she wasn't mad at him. If only she could tell him how she felt.


End file.
